Bleep

The second volume in Soul Jazz Records compilation of British punk music from the years 1977 to 1981 unearths yet more half-remembered gems from one of the UK’s most explosive scenes. Scanning the comprehensive collection, highlights include the Mekons’ spikey call to arms ’32 Weeks’, Puncture’s desperate and deranged ‘Mucky Pup’, and the Rings’ expansive ‘I Wanna Be Free’. The best of the bunch, however, are the cuts which remind of punk’s pop sensibilities. The Nerves’ ‘TV Adverts’ is as chirpy as it is confrontational and ‘I Don’t Believe’ sees the Disturbed riff off a template that recalls dub and reggae, with skanking guitar chords and a sumptuous vocal.